Maternity and long-term sickness cover for professionalsMove for top two divisions hailed as ‘great step forward’Professional female footballers in
England are to benefit from maternity and long-term sickness cover in a landmark change to their contracts.
![Female footballers in England get maternity cover after landmark change](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/ee63b23849bd9af4319339a74a28163b143e9b3a/0_138_3500_2100/master/3500.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=ff0ab25b4e14f978e285a83b5be619a6)
The move was hailed as a “great step forward” by the Sunderland Central MP, Julie Elliott, after she convened a debate in parliament on women’s experiences of playing
Football in England. The change has been agreed by the Football Association and Professional Footballers’ Association.